Jun 5, 2013; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid speaks to media after the mini camp at the University of Kansas Hospital Training Complex. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

I’m going to predict one team that will make the playoffs. Not three could be, or have the opportunity, but one definitely will be in the playoffs of 2013. Last year it was the Seahawks that came out of nowhere, this year it’s an AFC team. The Kansas City Chiefs will be a 9 or 10 win team this year. I also think they will either take the division from the Broncos or get a wild card birth. The hot names when it comes to playoffs are always New England, Pittsburgh, Houston, Baltimore, and Denver. This year we might have to include Kansas City. Here’s why:

Andy Reid has come to town, and with him a new philosophy. Out with the old, and in with the new. Andy Reid’s teams have always featured some great passing attacks, and schemes that maximize spacing and lanes. He took career 60% QB’s in McNabb and later Michael Vick and turned them into pass happy QB’s that found ways to get yardage. He will do the same in Kansas City.

Also within the weak division, the Chargers fired their head coach and are starting anew. The Raiders are always sub-par, and are now turning to a new QB in Matt Flynn. I count those as 3 ½ wins out of 4. Maybe 4 for 4, maybe 3 for 4, but they will beat the Raiders and Chargers.

Also consider the roster on offense. Andy Reid used athletic lineman to utilize stretch and zone blocking running plays in Philadelphia. He now has two bookend gifted tackles in Eric Fisher and Brandon Albert to move the offensive line around on running and passing plays. This will create opportunities for Jamaal Charles that McCoy was able to maximize in Philadelphia at running back. If the offensive line plays at a dominant level all season, the Chiefs will be the team to beat. If the line takes a while to gel, it will mean wins and losses for them.

The receivers in Philly like Jeremy Maclin and DeSean Jackson were able to get some large chunk yardage plays. I think the receivers in Kansas City are better. If you consider Dwayne Bowe and Baldwin on the outside, you already have one superstar receiver. Where the Chiefs will do damage is with the slot receivers. They currently have Dexter McCluster, Donnie Avery, and Devon Willie. All three of those guys are short, quick, slot guys that if used properly can eat up chunks of yards. So if used properly these 5 receivers together can spell trouble for just about everyone. It will also be the best receiving corps that Alex Smith has ever had.

Alex Smith is also replacing Matt Cassel. Enough said.

Defensively they are returning injured starters like Eric Berry. They have edge rushers that generate double digit sacks in Justin Houston (10 Sacks) andTambi Hali (9 sacks). They have a great middle linebacker in Derick Johnson. They have solid, but not spectacular cornerbacks The defensive line has also improved with the additions of Mike Devito to play alongside DT Dontari Poe and Tyson Jackson. Those two are fairly young, and Devito has a chance to be a leader and mentor on the d-line.

Add it all up, the injured players coming back, the infusion of talent from the draft and free agency, the coaching changes, the weak division. The Kansas City Chiefs will be the dominant team, and dominant offense of 2013. It’s only June, but the writing’s already on the wall.

Jan 7, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish linebacker Manti Te

1. The talent level is close and comparable on almost all 32 teams. There are no super teams in the NFL, just well coached teams with good game plans that cater to a specific strength. Other leagues the coach has nowhere near as much influence on the outcome of winning and losing as the NFL.

2.Age restrictions. The NFL requires it’s players to be 3+ years removed from high school. As a result they are more polished coming into a man’s game. Baseball has no age restrictions, and basketball has a 1 year restriction meaning many 18 or 19 year olds can become pro athletes. This waters down the league with players not ready to play in both sports, while the NFL has a better group of pro ready athletes at draft.

3.Draft process. The NFL has scouting combines, Senior Bowls, East-West Shrine Games, mountains of scouts watching film, interview processes, personal work outs. While all the other pro sports have this as well, none do it as well, as organized, or with as many layers as the NFL. It also helps the fans get to know the prospects where as other sports, particularly baseball, there isn’t as much fan interaction.

4.The team is bigger than the player. This is my main love for the NFL. The teams are always more important than the players. Baseball has monster contracts for players like A-Rod or Pujols. Basketball has max contracts. Football has a culture that always says the team is priority. Lebron James and Miami come to mind as transitory fans following a player. Football encourages team and city loyalty more than any other sport.

5.College degrees. While I am in no way saying a college degree makes you a better person, the NFL vastly outshines MLB, NHL, and NBA college graduates combined in players who have earned degrees. Players aside, NFL coaching staffs have more college degrees than MLB, NBA, or NHL as well. Players and coaches alike are more ahead of the field in the NFL. For an example, in 2010 880 NFL players were college grads compared to 80 in the NBA. Even though NBA has a 15 man roster and NFL has 50, if you multiplied the NBA college grads by 3 you would get 240-880 NFL over NBA. That’s just sad.

Jan 20, 2013; Foxboro, MA, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) walks off the field after losing to the Baltimore Ravens 28-13 in the AFC championship game at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stew Milne-USA TODAY Sports

Well, this rule wasn’t changed soon enough to the guy on the right, but anything that has the potential to annoy him will always classify as a good thing.

The NFL almost unanimously voted to eliminate the now famous “Tuck” rule. As you know, the rule allowed for a quarterback to be credited with an incomplete pass rather than a fumble when they are fumbling with their arm going forward. It came up several years ago in that now infamous Raiders/Patriots playoff game.

One less break for Tom Brady to be giv..oops I mean for Brady to get. Sorry, that just slipped out.

The second rule that was approved is one that a lot of players, current and former, or not in favor of. In a 31-1 vote, a rule was approved that will penalize 15 yards when either a ball-carrier or defender “initiates forcible contact by delivering a blow with the top/crown of his helmet against an opponent when both players clearly are outside the tackle box (an area extending from tackle-to-tackle and from three yards beyond the line of scrimmage to the offensive team’s end line).”

The rule is getting mixed reviews, especially from backs like Matt Forte, and Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk, who have talked about how it’s almost impossible to run without lowering your head.

To me, it seems that there is a big crop of backs that will lower their heads in that manner to get the extra yard or two at the end of the play. The premise of safety makes sense, of course, but to what extend? It still is tackle football, isn’t it? I don’t think you can make tackle football non-violent forever.

It will be interesting to see what types of calls are made on this.